The two celestrians
by Berserkerlord
Summary: What happens when a celestrian and dark celestrian fall from the observatory? Sh*t gets real that's what happens.  Celestrian/Erinn  Dark Celestrian/?
1. Preview

Because of the fact that I have not found any dragon quest 9 fanfiction about a male OC character that is of high quality I decided to make my own.

In this world there are two major powers. The almighty and his celestrian servants and a group of gods known as the northern gods and their servants the dark celestrians. A long time ago people the almighty and the northern gods decided to separate their two groups of worshipers to keep them from killing each other over whose religion was right. So they magically separated the two halves of their world where their followers lived. They only left a small opening but people almost never use that.

The two main characters in this story are a celestrian and dark celestrian. The dark celestrian was sent over to the observatory to serve as a diplomat. The dark celestrian is named Njord and the celestrian is named Matthew. The pairings will be celestrian OC/Erinn but I have not decided on a pairing for the dark celestrian. I will probably put this up for decision by the reviewers. NO YAOI PAIRINGS!

Here are the descriptions of the two OCs.

Matthew has spiky blond hair and blue eyes. He wears the typical celestrian clothes and has an iron sword. He has white wings and a halo like all other celestrians.

Njord has black wings and a black halo (this is were the name dark celestrian comes from). He wears a blank mask (like the ANBU masks in Naruto) which conceals his face but when he takes his mask off it reveals that he has curly brown hair and green eyes. He has a large tattoo of a hammer on his back (I will not go into detail but if you want to know what it looks like google hammer of thor). He wears chain mail armor and black pants and wields a sword that is strapped to his hip and a spear and a battle axe in an X shape across his back.


	2. Chapter 1

I don't own dragon quest 9.

If you want my OCs description check the preview.

Njord looked out over the protectorate with a blank stare. He really preferred the protectorate to the observatory, he had been treated with suspicion by most of the celestrians because of his background as a dark celestrian. One of the exceptions was his friend Matthew. He and Matthew were both apprenticed under Aquila who was one of the most respected celestrians in the entire observatory. It was their job to protect the small village of Angel Falls.

Njord heard footsteps behind him and turned around to see Matthew walking up with his ever-present smile on his face. Many of the celestrians wondered how these two completely different individuals could be such good friends. Matthew was constantly smiling while Njord usually had on a look of complete apathy under his mask, Matthew was emotional while Njord was as cold as a glacier. The differences just went on and on and on, but despite that they were almost inseperable.

"Hey Njord it's time to go down to Angel Falls" said Matthew seeming even more excited then he usually was when they received a mission.

"Why do you seem more excited then usual for this mission?" Asked Njord raising an unseen eyebrow.

"Don't you remember? Aquila said that today was the day we were made official guardians" exclaimed Matthew in disbelief. He could not believe Njord wasn't as excited as he was to finally become an official guardian.

"Are you sure it isn't because that girl Erinn is supposed to come back today?" Said Njord with a teasing tone in his voice. He knew about his Matthew's crush on the blue haired innkeeper and his main source of amusement was teasing his blond friend about it.

"What, no it's not that I can't believe you would think that!" exclaimed Matthew as he turned his head to hide his reddening face. "Oh, let's just go already." He said as he heard Njord let out one of his small chuckles. He quickly turned around and entered the observatory with Njord just behind him.

They both quickly met up with Aquila and descended to the bottom floor of the observatory. Aquila noticed the red tinge to Matthew's face but decided not to comment on it.

"Are you both ready?" He asked his two apprentices. They both nodded, Matthew very rapidly, showing his eagerness, Njord only nodded once. "Then let's go." He said as the two celestrians and one dark celestrian descended to the protectorate. They stopped by the large waterfall that gave the small village its name and watched the people of the village go about their daily lives. He saw a young boy chase his dog and farmer tending to his horses, he also so several people relaxing in the pool formed by the waterfall. One of the best-kept secrets of Angel Falls was that the water in the waterfall actually came from underground hot springs, this meant that the water in the pool was always at a relaxing eighty five degrees. "You both have come very far." Said Aquila as he looked with pride at his two apprentices. "I must admit that I had my doubts about you two when I first saw you. But the inhabitants' of Angel Fall has never seemed safer since you two started helping me with my duties. I am now very proud to give you two the official title of guardian of Angel Falls." Said Aquila beaming at his two apprentices.

"Guys it looks like we have company." Said Njord removing his axe from his back as he noticed that Erinn and her grandfather were returning to Angel Falls and were about to be ambushed by two slimes and a cruelcumber. "We'd be pretty poor excuses for guardians if we let two of our followers get hurt. Let's go get those monsters." He said as he flew towards the monsters with Aquila and Matthew close behind.

As the two celestrians and one dark celestrians dropped down behind the monsters they turned around and gained a nervous look in their eyes, seeing that these three were a lot more dangerous than any other opponent they had ever seen. But they realized they couldn't get away so they prepared to attack.

The two slimes squared off against Njord and Matthew but were quickly dispatched by a spear thrust from Njord and two sword slashes from Matthew. The cruelcumber was also dispatched with ease by Aquila. The three monsters disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Fourteen gold coins also appeared in a small pouch, Njord and Matthew split them evenly amongst themselves.

The three guardians decided to stay and make sure Erinn and her grandfather got to the village safely.

"See grandpa! Angel Falls is right up ahead." Said Erinn as she looked back at her grandfather.

"Ah it will be good to rest my weary bones in the hot spring again. I thought I might actually not live to see this place again." Said Erinn's grandfather as he caught up with his young granddaughter.

"Don't be so dramatic grandpa! The Guardians will have been watching us the entire time we were away. Nothing bad ever could happen to us with their protection." Said Erinn as she offered a prayer of thanks to the guardians. As she completed her prayer a light blue orb floated into Matthew's hands.

"We should go take this benevolessence to Yggdrasil." Said Matthew as he put the benevolessence into the magic pouch strapped to his belt.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay and keep Erinn company?" Said Njord with a mirthful tone.

"Njord I think we can discuss Matthew's massive crush on Erinn after offering the benevolessence to Yggdrasil." Said Aquila as he took off.

"Yeah…wait, what. I don't like her like that master!" Exclaimed Matthew as he took off after his master.

"Suuure you don't." said Njord with a light chuckle as he caught up with Matthew.

"Now expect you two to go tell Apus Major about the success of your mission. I have other things to attend to." Said Aquila as he walked off.

"Come on let's get this over with so I can go sleep." Said Njord as he and Matthew ascended to the great tree after getting permission from the elderly Apus Major.

"By sleep do you mean sleep or do you mean drink yourself into a coma?" Asked Matthew with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.

"Either." Answered Njord simply. He would be the first to admit that he drank a lot but he never let himself get so drunk he couldn't defend himself if he was in a dangerous area.

Matthew went up to the large tree and offered up the benevolessence. The tree glowed as the blue orb vanished into the branches.

"Behold Njord and Matthew. Isn't Yggdrasil beautiful?" Asked Aquila as he walked up behind the two new guardians. "Soon Yggdrasil will bear fruit and we will return to the realm of the almighty. We will continue guarding the protectorate but we will stay in the realm of the almighty when we are off duty. Though celestrians that are on duty will stay on the observatory so that they won't have to make a long journey back to the protectorate." He said as he looked up at the majestic tree. "I trust you two will perform your duties well guardians of Angel Falls." He said as he looked at his apprentices.

"Don't worry about it you can count on us." Said Matthew with his typical enthusiasm.

"Yeah, and when Matthew is to busy peeking on Erinn in the hotsprings I will work twice as hard to make up for him." Said Njord with an uncharacteristically happy tone.

"You know that was an accident." Exclaimed Matthew with a neon red blush. He had once seen Erinn when he was flying over the female part of the hotsprings that was separated from the male side by a wooden wall.

"I will escort you down to the protectorate and leave you to your evening rounds." Said Aquila, choosing to ignore his students' argument.

Njord, Matthew, and Aquila descended to the bottom floor of the observatory and then leapt through the large hole in the center of the floor.


	3. Chapter 2

I don't own dragon quest 9 if I did I wouldn't be writing here.

Njord savored the feeling of the wind as he, Matthew, and Aquila descended to Angel Falls. Aquila left them before they fully reached the ground. The two new guardians slowly circled lower until they landed on a small piece of land in the river that led from the waterfall. The two guardians decided to listen in on a conversation between two young boys; Ivor the mayor's son and his "lackey" Hugo.

"It's weird don't you think?" Said Ivor.

"Do you mean the name plaque on the guardian statue?" Asked Hugo tilting his head to the side.

"No duh I mean the plaque Hugo, you idiot! Yesterday it said Aqui- something. But now there are two of them and the names are Njord and Matthew." Said Ivor shocked that Hugo had not noticed the change.

"Really? It's said that for as long as I can remember." Said Hugo.

"And just how long is that? Have you ever even read it before?" Asked Ivor getting an annoyed look on his face.

"Well…not exactly." Admitted Hugo.

"You see! Everyone around here is weird. It just changed and everyone thinks that it has always been that way." Said Ivor.

"It must be the work of the village guardians then!" Exclaimed Hugo.

"Don't be so naïve. There's no such thing as guardians. They're just made up. Only Erinn believes in all that shit. She's just a dumb, uh…whatever you call someone with blue hair." Said Ivor as he shook his head. Causing Matthew and Njord to glare at him.

"I really wish I could beat that kid up" Said Njord as his hand drifted toward one of his knives.

The two guardians heard a young boy asking them two teach Ivor a lesson and got wicked looking grins on their faces.

"You thinking what I'm thinking." Asked Matthew.

"You bet." Said Njord as he and Matthew hovered up behind behind Ivor and unsheathed the swords before simultaneously hitting Ivor on the back of the head with the butts of their swords causing him to fall to the ground.

"Ow! Who did that, the village guardians? If you're really there shouldn't you be helping people not hitting them?" Said Ivor as he got up and looked around for the person who hit him.

"Well let's go find some more people to help." Said Matthew as he and Njord headed to the nearest place were people who needed something would go, the church.

They saw an old woman praying for help finding her ring. They looked around the village, helping a man by cleaning up his stables until they found the ring in the possession of a dog. They then placed the ring in the old woman's pocket causing her to release some benevolessence.

After coming out of the church they saw that it had become dark out.

"It looks like it's time for evening rounds." Said Matthew as he and Njord flew to the small island in the middle of the river that ran through the village. They saw Aquila hovering above the island and flew over to him.

"I am glad to see you two taking your new jobs seriously. But there is one last lesson that I have to teach you. As guardians it is your job to tend to the mortals but this does not just mean the living. You must also learn how to help those whose souls continue to roam the land. There is one such soul just across the bridge. I want you to explain the situation to him and help him pass on." Said Aquila as he pointed to a glowing form across the bridge.

After helping the soul pass on they got a piece of benevolessence that seemed to glow even more brightly then the other pieces that they had.

"You two have done well. The benevolessence of a departed soul shines brighter than any other. Let us return to the observatory." Said Aquila as the two celestrians and one dark celestrian spread their wings and flew up towards the observatory.

As they flew up they noticed a golden train known as the starlight express flying up through the sky.

"It is your job to offer up the benevolessence. I have important matters that I must discuss with Apus Major." Said Aquila as he walked off.

As Njord and Matthew climbed up the to the top of the observatory they saw that Apus Major and Aquila standing in front of the tree.

"It seems that you two have chosen a fortuitous moment to join us. The fyggs are almost ready to bloom. Offer up your benevolessence so that we may return to the realm of the Almighty." Said Aquila as he gestured toward the brightly glowing tree.

As Njord and Matthew stepped forward they held up their hands and the spheres of benevolessence materialized and flew up toward the tree. After the spheres of light flew up into the tree golden fruit began to form on the branches.

As the starlight express landed to next to the observatory a beam of purple light shot up and pierced through part of the observatory and shattered the golden train into multiple pieces. Njord and Matthew tried to hold on but were lifted up by the shock wave and fell down into the waterfall in Angel Falls.

All across the world people saw bizarre streaks of light falling to the ground and wondered what they were.

Njord managed to drag Matthew up onto the ground so that they wouldn't drown but after a few minutes he himself passed out. As slumped down onto the ground he heard many voices that he recognized and wondered what would become of him and his friend.

As Njord and Matthew stood in front of the celestrian statue they thought about what had happened since they had arrived. They had found out that somehow they had become humans and after a brief moment of panic realized that they were both heavily bandaged. Erinn had walked in and told them that they had been found at the top of the waterfall. They had spent several days helping out around town as they tried to gain their bearings. They helped out around Erinn's house and at the hotsprings. But in their free time they stood in front of the statue and wondered how to get back to their home.

Njord had gotten a gift during this time sent from his gods. It was a horse named Sleipner. It was the son of the horse of the king of the gods and was named after its sire. He was the second fastest horse only being outrun by his father.

But the two guardians train of thought was interrupted by an obnoxious voice.

"Hey, it's Njord and Matthew, those two characters who turned up just after the earthquake. What are you doing there staring off into space?" Asked Ivor as he and Hugo walked up behind them.

"We are thinking, something you clearly have no experience doing." Said Njord as he looked with disdain at the arrogant boy.

"I don't know what Erinn thinks she's doing with you. You won't tell us where you are from, your clothes are all weird…I wouldn't trust you as far as I can throw him." Said Ivor shaking his head.

"Just try throwing me and you will get hurt in ways you can't imagine." Said Matthew as he put his hand on the hilt of his sword.

"I bet it's their names that interests Erinn so much. They have the same names as our village guardians." Said Hugo.

"Probably aren't even their real names. He's probably just some wandering minstrel taking on a Guardian's name to get a free lunch." Said Ivor placing his hands on his hips.

"Do you ever say anything that doesn't make someone want to punch you? Not to mention that we are both clearly capable of killing you." Said Njord as he crossed his arms.

"Hey look here comes Erinn." Said Hugo turning around.

"What are you to bothering Matthew and Njord for?" Asked Erinn as she walked up toward the small group.

"We were just leaving. Come on Hugo." Said Ivor as he walked away.

"I wonder why Ivor is so full of himself? He never acted like that before." Said Erinn as she watched them walk away.

"You two seem to be feeling well now that you are out walking around without any help." Erinn said as she turned around and looked at the two. Hiding a small blush as she glanced at Matthew.

"Getting better every day." Said Njord cheerfully.

"I will be at the house so finish your walk, but don't push yourself to hard." Erinn said as she turned around.

"Keep your eyes above the waist Matthew." Said Njord as he nudged Matthew with his elbow.

"Will you stop making comments like that!" Exclaimed Matthew as he blushed red.

"Come on let's go explore and then unwind at the hot spring." Said Njord as he dragged Matthew along behind him.


	4. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Quest 9.**

Sorry for being so long to update, my excuse is one word **HOMESTUCK** (Bolded for emphasis). If you don't know what it is then consider yourself lucky.

_Throughout the month of July I will try to update my stories very frequently as a sort of reverse birthday present where I give you guys more chapters during the month of my birth._

* * *

><p>LAST TIME<p>

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><p>"I will be at the house so finish your walk, but don't push yourself to hard." Erinn said as she turned around.<p>

"Keep your eyes above the waist Matthew." Said Njord as he nudged Matthew with his elbow.

"Will you stop making comments like that!" Exclaimed Matthew as he blushed red.

"Come on let's go explore and then unwind at the hot spring." Said Njord as he dragged Matthew along behind him.

* * *

><p>NOW<p>

* * *

><p>"Well we might as well go and talk to the mayor. He seems to be quite sensible, though how he sired someone like Ivor is completely beyond me." Njord said, as he mumbled the last part of his sentence under his breath. He and Matthew were heading towards the mayors house for no particular reason other than they had not yet introduced themselves to the mayor yet. As they entered they seemed to stumble in on a bit of a family dispute between the mayor and Ivor.<p>

"Isn't it about time you did something useful with yourself rather than just hanging about the place causing trouble?" The mayor asked his son, who seemed to actually be in pain from the verbal lashing. "You'd do well to take a leaf out of Erinn's book. She puts in a lot of hard work at the inn, that girl." He continued.

"Huh! What's Erinn got to do with it? I am trying to find something I want to do, anyway. And when I figure out what that is, I'll work my socks off! …Probably…" Ivor responded, although even he didn't seem that convinced by his own argument.

After being amused by that particular bit of drama, Matthew coughed to alert the two bickering family members to their presence. Ivor's face reddened and he immediately exited the room, allowing the two former guardians to walk over to the mayor.

"Ah, you were the two young minstrels that fell from the top of the waterfall, aren't you? If your injuries are healed, then I suggest that you find yourself some work rather than just hanging about the place." The mayor told them before turning back to a group of documents on the table that no doubt required his full attention, so the two new humans exited the house and made their way to the springs to unwind.

The pool at the base of the waterfall was divided into two sections, one for the men and one for the women, after changing the two former guardians slid into the water, hoping to relax until they had to return to Erinn's for dinner, the male side of the spring was deserted, which gave Njord all the excuse he needed to start a conversation on something that both he and Matthew had been putting off.

"So what the hell do you think happened to us anyway? One minute we're watching the starlight express descend to finally take you regular celestrians back to the realm of the Almighty, the next we're shot by a giant beam of light and we wake up in Angel Falls and now we're human. I belive this qualifies as some seriously weird shit." Njord said as he leaned back in the water.

"Whatever happened right now we don't know how to reverse it so we might as well make due with what we are given, the others are probably searching for us so there's no need to worry to much." Matthew said in a slightly quieter voice, hoping to be a little more discreet than his friend.

"Well I guess you're right. No use trying to change what you can't." Njord agreed. The two then got out of the springs and headed back to Erinn's house.

"Hello Njord, and Matthew." Erinn said cheerfully as they entered the house. "I've just this minute finished preparing the food. You look like you just want to eat your dinner and turn in for the night don't you?" She asked. The two celestrians nodded and quickly sat down. After eating dinner and hearing about a landslide, which had apparently blocked the pass leading to Angel Falls, they returned to their beds and fell asleep.

* * *

><p>THE NEXT MORNING<p>

* * *

><p>"Morning Njord and Matthew." Erinn said happily as she entered the room that Njord and Matthew shared. The two young men were still lying sprawled on their beds. "Come on, get up! You two have a visitor. Ivor's here. He's got something or other he wants to talk to you about. He knows you're here, so I can't very well turn him away. Just give him a few minutes of your time, okay?" She said before walking out. The two then got up out of their beds and switched into their normal clothes, grumbling about their rest being interrupted.<p>

"I tell you Matthew, there's just something wrong with someone who can wake up so early and be so damn chipper." Said Njord as he adjusted his chain mail and strapped his sword to his hip, and his spear and axe to his back.

"Your just angry because you didn't get to sleep half the day away." Countered Matthew as he put on his celestrian clothing.

"No, what I'm mad about is that prick Ivor waking us up. If he doesn't have a good reason for disturbing us then he's going to learn what it feels like to have a spear thrust through your gut at fifty miles an hour." Njord said as he and Matthew descended the stairs. Ivor was standing just inside the door and heard the last bit of Njord's comment and started to sweat lightly.

"Hey, guys. Don't act so surprised. There's something I want to talk to you about, that's all. We can't talk about it here, though. Come outside for a minute." Ivor said as he headed outside and the two followed him. "So here's the thing. You've heard about how the pass has been blocked by a landslide, right?" He asked prompting a nod from the two of them. "Well, that pass is a lifeline for us here in Angel Falls. We're totally cut off if we can't use it. It's a real problem for everyone. So I was thinking: what better time for Ivor to come to the rescue? I'm going to clear the landslide and make it passable again. It'll get my dad off my back for a while, and I know everyone else will be pleased as well. There's just one hitch with my perfect plan. Since the earthquake, there have been lots of monsters about, and it's pretty dangerous to leave the village now. That's where you come in. I was thinking that maybe you could tag along. You minstrel types are generally pretty handy in a scrap, right? Can I count on you to help me out." He asked. Njord and Matthew looked at each other, and a silent agreement passed between them. They both turned to Ivor and nodded their heads. "Knew it! Right then, I'll meet you at the village gate." He said before running off.

"He clearly doesn't realize that if this landslide is big enough to block off an entire mountain passage that it probably isn't something that can be cleared by one person." Matthew said, having noticed several gaps in Ivor's logic.

"Fuck his failure in common sense, why does he keep calling us minstrels. I mean, you I understand because you actually are one. But I'm not." Njord complained.

"Well we can't let him go off alone, he'll get himself killed so let's go." Matthew said.

"Okay, but first we need you to get you something actually worth traveling in, those clothes make you stick out like a sore thumb. Not to mention you need a better sword than that copper toothpick you carry around all the time." Njord said as he took Matthew to the village shop, where they got him some Wayfarer's clothes and a Soldier's sword, although they had to sell Njord's spear and axe. "There now we can leave." He said, slightly depressed because of parting with his weapons, as he and Matthew went and met Ivor at the gate. When they got there they walked past Hugo, who gave them no trouble after Ivor told him to back off. And went out of the village. After fighting through several monsters such as cruelcumbers, slimes, sacksquatches, and teeny sanguinis they made it to the pass.

"Finally! We're here at last. The landslide's somewhere in these woods, apparently." Ivor said as they walked down the road through a thick forest. When they reached a fork in the road Njord and Matthew's eyes widened, right between the two roads was a large white train car. "What are you staring at?" Ivor asked, apparently unable to see the train car. "It's just a fallen tree, I don't get what's so fascinating about it. You can be properly weird sometimes, you know that?" He continued as he walked down one of the roads. "The landslide's this way. I'll go on ahead!" He said as he broke into a run.

The two celestrians walked towards the door at the back of the car and tried to open it, but it was shut tight. So they decided to leave, realizing that it wasn't going anywhere. What they didn't notice was a small pink ball of light coming out from hiding and floating next to the door. "That was weird, it was almost as if they could see the Starflight Express…" Said a feminine voice that came from the ball of light.

The two continued down the road until they saw Ivor who was staring almost comically at a massive wall of rocks, trees, and mud.

"This is worse than I thought! Is this it? But it's so much bigger than I thought…" Ivor said in shock. Njord took a breath and Matthew had to elbow him in the ribs to avert the inevitable "that's what she said" line he knew his friend would say. Ivor kicked the landslide in rage, and it disturbed some of the rocks causing it to shift slightly, making the group jump back to avoid getting crushed if the landslide decided to fall down on them.

"Hello! Is somebody there?" Came a voice from the other side of the landslide causing the group to look up in surprise. "Hello! If you're there, say something!" The voice said.

"Hey! I'm over here. It's me, Ivor from Angel Falls. No doubt you've heard of me!" Ivor said, realizing that someone was on the other side of the wall of debris. His egotistical comment caused Njord and Matthew to simultaneously facepalm at Ivor's stupidity.

"Jings! Someone from Angel Falls! We're soldiers sent from Stormway! King Schott sent us to clear the landslide." The people on the other side of the landslide responded.

"Blimey! The King of Stormway must really rate Angel Falls to bother helping us out like that." Ivor said as he turned to Njord and Matthew. "I suppose that means we're not really needed here, then. Huh! Now I wish we hadn't bothered coming all this way." He continued, causing Njord's eye to twitch in rage at his fickleness.

"Wait! There's an urgent matter we need to ask you about. Do you happen to know if a lass called Patty made her way to your village just after the earthquake? She works at the inn in Stormway, but she took off one day for Angel Falls and we've heard nothing of her since." The soldier asked.

"Patty? Nope, doesn't ring any bells. Why would she want to come to Angel Falls anyway?" Ivor responded.

"Aye, well, rumor has it that she was on her way there through the Hexagon. The path there's been blocked too, though, so we've no way of finding out where she is." The soldier said.

"The Hexagon? That old ruin we used to have to go traipsing all the way through before this pass was built? No one goes there any more. It's jam-packed with monsters and falling apart so badly it might come down on your head! There's no way anyone would go there alone. The rumors must be wrong." Ivor said, yelling the last bit to the soldiers.

"Alright, well perhaps you could just relay to your village the fact that the road will be open again soon. And if you could ask around about Patty while you're at it, that'd be grand." The soldier said.

"No problemo! Just leave it to me. Come on, guys. Home time! I reckon everyone will be pleased to hear the news." Ivor said as they rushed back to the village. They could already here the sound of the soldiers clearing away the landslide as they left the area.

As they were leaving Njord paused mid stride with a confused look on his face, causing the other two to look back at him in confusion.

"What is it Njord?" Matthew asked, noting the look on his friends face.

"…Did that soldier say Jings… What the fuck does that mean?" He asked, causing the other two to get a contemplative look on their faces before they all looked at each other and shrugged deciding to ignore it and head back to the village.

* * *

><p>BACK AT THE VILLAGE<p>

* * *

><p>"I see. So the soldiers from Stormway should have the pass cleared for us before long." The mayor said as Ivor, Njord, and Matthew finished recounting their story.<p>

"That's right. Everyone will be so relieved to hear the news. Ivor saves the day, eh?" Ivor said cockily.

"Don't be ridiculous! You were foolish to go all the way out there, just the three of you. Utterly foolish!" The mayor yelled.

"B-But! Why are you so angry? If we hadn't gone to the landslide, you'd never have known it was about to be cleared." Ivor said.

"Ignoring Ivor's idiocy, me and Matthew are perfectly capable fighters, a few monsters wouldn't pose any real threat to either of us." Njord said, angry that the mayor, who clearly had no experience in battle, was dismissing their skills.

"While that may be true Njord, if I didn't know that the landslide was going to be cleared now, I would have found out soon enough. Knowing a little bit sooner is hardly worth risking your life for. That's why I'm angry." The mayor said, understanding that the two newcomers to his village were quite good at the art of battle, but still feeling angry at his son for his foolishness.

"…Gah! Fine! …Oh yeah, there was something else. Something I heard from one of the soldiers. They want us to find some girl called Patty who went missing on her way here." Ivor said as he recalled the soldier's words. Before the mayor could respond Erinn burst into the room with a worried look on her face.

"Wait a minute! Is that true?" She asked as she walked up to the table.

"Gah. When the fuck did you get here?" Njord asked, surprised at her sudden entry. Matthew quickly slapped him on the back of the head for his crude language.

"Erinn! What are you doing here?" Ivor asked.

"What do you think? I'm here because I heard you whisked Njord off on some silly adventure! Anyway, never mind that. Is it true that Patty from Stormway has gone missing." She asked apparently worried.

"Ah, yes. You're from Stormway originally, aren't you Erinn? Do you know the woman?" The mayor asked.

"I seem to remember my dad talking about someone called Patty from his days in Stormway. Oh dear! Maybe she didn't know he'd passed away and she was coming here to see him." She gasped.

"Hmm… Well, I can understand everyone's concerns, but we can't very well send off a search part with no lead to go on." The mayor said.

"Actually, the soldier mentioned that she might have been trying to make her way here through some place called the Hexagon." Matthew said, remembering how Ivor had said that the ruins were filled with monsters and very unstable.

"Is that so? Well, even if that's the case, we still can't be of any help. The Hexagon is far too dangerous nowadays. Erinn, why don't you take Njord home now? Try not to worry too much." The mayor said. "I'd appreciate a bit of privacy so I can talk some sense into this pig-headed son of mine." He said as he turned towards Ivor.

"Th-There's no need for that, Dad!" Ivor said as Erinn led Njord and Matthew out of the house.

* * *

><p>BACK AT ERINN'S HOUSE<p>

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><p>"I was so worried when I heard you'd left the village Matthew." Erinn said.<p>

"What am I, chopped cruelcumber?" Asked Njord, crossing his arms.

"Oh, and you too Njord. But you seem to be unscathed, though. You're obviously a lot tougher than I thought." She said, trying to placate Njord. "Speaking of which, um… I wonder if I could ask you a favor. You see, I'm quite worried about all this talk of Patty going missing. So I was wondering if you could- Oh, never mind! The Hexagon is really far too dangerous. I couldn't possibly ask that much of you." She said. The two former celestrians looked at each other before nodding and heading back outside of the house.

"So… we're going to the Hexagon aren't we?" Matthew asked as he got a grin on his face.

"You bet your no longer winged ass we are." Njord said as they continued towards the gate. As they passed through the gate Njord remembered something and got a wicked gleam in his eyes. "So… Erinn was worried about you." He said in a teasing tone.

"Shut up!" Yelled Matthew as his face turned red and Njord laughed.

"Come on lover boy, can't keep the monsters waiting." Njord said as he ran down the road towards the Hexagon with Matthew right behind him.

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><p><strong>Here you guys go.<strong>

**I need suggestions on who Njord should be paired with. Leave your suggestions in the review box. Anonymous reviews are enabled so _anyone_ can review even if you don't have an account.**


	5. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own dragon quest 9. Though I do own a copy of the game.

Remember to review

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><p>LAST TIME<p>

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><p>"So… we're going to the Hexagon aren't we?" Matthew asked as he got a grin on his face.<p>

"You bet your no longer winged ass we are." Njord said as they continued towards the gate. As they passed through the gate Njord remembered something and got a wicked gleam in his eyes. "So… Erinn was worried about you." He said in a teasing tone.

"Shut up!" Yelled Matthew as his face turned red and Njord laughed.

"Come on lover boy, can't keep the monsters waiting." Njord said as he ran down the road towards the Hexagon with Matthew right behind him.

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><p>NOW<p>

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><p>Matthew and Njord fought there way through several enemies until they found themselves at the entrance to the Hexagon. It was a massive ruin with an old road that was overrun with weeds and grass coming from the entrance.<p>

"Okay I get this place is filled with monsters, but what's with the lakes of poison?" Matthew asked as they walked between two pools of a strange purple liquid. Njord just shrugged in response. They then walked through the stone doors and saw that the Hexagon was surprisingly well lit, there were several ponds which had lily pads on them, from the lily pads grew plants which seemed to have balls of light coming from the top. However, when they tried to continue forward they found their way blocked by a massive stone with a warning on it.

"Let's try that side passage we saw on our way in. Holy fuck it's a ghost!" Matthew exclaimed as they turned around and were startled to see a semi-transparent man standing behind them. Without a word the ghost walked over to a side passage that the two had observed, and, having no other options, they decided to follow him. They found him standing behind a statue and he gestured toward the back of the statue before fading away, upon closer examination they found a button in the back of its neck. They pressed it and then heard a noise that sounded like stone being dragged across stone. They returned to the main corridor to see that the stone that had previously blocked their entrance had moved out of the way. They entered and went down a flight of stairs, they were then confronted by the sight of several monsters standing in front of another stairway, the two nodded to each other and charged at the monsters, they ended up sore and Njord's left arm was slightly singed from a fire spell cast by a floating wizard monster, but otherwise they were ok. They also managed to learn a sword technique called Dragon slash. After several more fights with monsters and trying to navigate the ruins, with Njord complaining all the while, they finally found themselves near the exit.

"And another thing, who makes a trade route so needlessly complex? Did these people not know that the easiest way from point A to point B is a straight line?" Njord complained as they walked up the steps, however he stopped his rant and he and Matthew immediately saw what was up ahead. A young blue haired woman was trapped under a pile of rubble, it appeared to have missed her head and torso, but it was pinning her legs to the floor.

"Oh, my- I never expected to bump into anyone all the way down here! Hey, sweetie, you couldn't be a hero and shift some of this rubble for me, could ya?" She asked. "I'm not badly hurt or anything, but I'm kinda stuck here, ya know?" She continued. "And I don't fancy being around when that beast comes back." She said. Matthew and Njord started to lift some of the rubble but before they could free her there was the sound of heavy footsteps and dust rained from the ceiling. "Oh, brother! It's back!" Patty said worriedly. Through the thick dust that had come down from the ceiling a large horned monster appeared, Njord and Matthew rushed in front of the rubble trapping Patty, distracting the behemoth.

The monster managed to leap into the air, causing a tremor to rock the room and sending rubble falling down on the two, fortunately they managed to dodge the larger pieces, but Matthew was hit on the shoulder by one of the falling bits of debris. Njord, hoping to draw attention away from his injured friend so he could cast a healing spell, ran at the beast and stabbed it in the flank, it quickly turned around and it's horns struck him as it turned, sending him skidding back, he could feel his ribs strain to not be broken by the impact. While the Hexagoon was distracted, however Matthew managed to cast heal on himself, and used the beast's unawareness to stab it in the leg, causing it to roar in pain. Since it could no longer charge the two took advantage of its weakness to jump towards it and stab it, Njord bringing down his sword on it's forehead and Matthew stabbing through its hide so that his sword punctured its heart.

The two sheathed their swords and Matthew quickly cast heal on Njord to repair any damage to his ribs.

"You're tougher than you look. Thanks for saving my hide there." Said Patty as she stood up and duster herself off. "Ya know, I managed to shake myself free in all the chaos. So let's get outta here, huh? Being attacked by monsters is such a drag." She said as she walked towards the door with Njord and Matthew following.

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><p>TIME SKIP<p>

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><p>"Phew! We're safe now, I guess. Ya know, I'm just not a dark ruins kind of a gal!" The woman said as the group walked out of the ruins. "I'm Patty, by the way. I run the inn over in Stornway. And you are…?" The now identified Patty asked.<p>

"I'm Matthew, this is Njord." Matthew said, gesturing to himself and his companion. "We were sent from Angel Falls to look for you." He explained.

"Get outta here! You're from Angel Falls?" She asked. "Ah! That reminds me… I've gotta get to Angel Falls right away. See ya. And thanks a bunch for your help!" She said before blowing them a kiss and running off. The two former guardians looked at each other, shrugged and then started on their way back to Angel Falls, although at a more leisurely pace. Their path was unimpeded by monsters, which seemed to be able to sense the power of the two former celestrians.

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><p>OK so apparently the way to get reviews is to threaten small adorable animals… I can do that. *<strong>Holds up a hamster<strong>. Now review or the cute little hamster gets it.


	6. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Dragon Quest.

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><p>LAST TIME<p>

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><p>"Get outta here! You're from Angel Falls?" Patty asked. "Ah! That reminds me… I've gotta get to Angel Falls right away. See ya. And thanks a bunch for your help!" She said before blowing them a kiss and running off. The two former guardians looked at each other, shrugged and then started on their way back to Angel Falls, although at a more leisurely pace. Their path was unimpeded by monsters, which seemed to be able to sense the power of the two former celestrians.<p>

* * *

><p>NOW<p>

* * *

><p>The trip back to Angel Falls was rather uneventful save for one incident where they were attacked by one very brave or very stupid sacksquatch.<p>

"Seriously who comes up with the names for these things?" Matthew asked as the two walked through the entrance to Angel Falls. Njord shrugged, honestly not knowing the answer.

"Hey guys!" Hugo said as they passed him. "A woman came barging through just now and dashed into the inn. Do you know what that's about?" He asked.

"Yep." The two responded in unison. They then headed off in the direction of inn before Hugo could continue his line of questioning. They walked into the inn to see Patty looking around.

"Uh-huh, this is Edwinn's place alright! No one else knew how to do it quite like he did. The original host with the most." Patty said as she nodded approvingly.

"Did you know my father, then?" Erinn asked before a look of comprehension dawned on her face. "Oh! You must be Patty! I was so worried about you. I heard that someone called Patty had gone missing on their way here." She said.

"Yup, that's me, honey! You were worried huh? That's sweet. And I can't believe you remembered my name! You were so tiny. So…where's old Edwinn hiding, huh?" Patty asked.

"Ah. I thought you were probably coming to see him." Erinn said as she lowered her eyes. "I'm afraid that he's no longer with us… It was two years ago now…" She said.

"Huh? No longer with us…? You mean he passed away?" Patty said, shocked.

"Sadly, yes." Erinn said as she nodded her head somberly.

"Wow. I, I can't believe it. So the Inncredible… That's… Gee, what does that mean for my old inn, then?" Patty said before she got a light in her eyes. "I guess if Edwinn's gone, that means you're running this place all on your own, huh?" She asked.

"Um, well, yes." Erinn confirmed.

"It's not the biggest inn in the world, but it's so quaint. I bet the guests here feel more welcome than in their own homes!" She said as she turned around so that her back was facing Erinn.

"That's very kind of you. I try my best to honour my father's memory by keeping the place running smoothly." Erinn said with a slight blush, not used to such compliments.

"Hey, I wouldn't expect anything else from the daughter of the Inncredible Inntertainer honey!" Patty said.

"Um, about this Inncredible thing…?" Erinn was about to finish her question but Patty quickly turned around and pointed a finger at her.

"Hey! I don't suppose you wanna give running an inn in Stornway a shot, do ya?" She asked enthusiasticly.

"Um… I beg your pardon!?" Erinn asked, surprised.

* * *

><p>TIME SKIP<p>

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><p>"So when Dad was in Stornway, people used to call him the Inncredible Inntertainer?" Erinn asked. Paddy had explained that Erinn's father had been known as one of the best innkeepers in the world and she was having a hard time believing it.<p>

"You better believe it, honey! He was the best of the best!" Patty said emphatically. "He was only a young guy back then, but he set up his own inn from scratch and totally put his rivals out of business." She said.

"Goodness! I can't imagine him being like that. He always seemed so unadventurous to me, and he said he was happy to run even the smallest of inns as long as we were together." Erinn said, not seemingly able to wrap her head around the idea.

"_How is running an inn adventurous?_" Njord and Matthew thought simultaneously.

"Yeah, that's the funny thing… Why would a guy like Edwin choose to ship out to a hick town like this?" Patty said. "Well, I guess that's water under the bridge. The thing is, his old place in Stornway is in real trouble right now. We were all kinda hoping that the Inncredible Inntertainer would make a comeback and get things on track again. I just can't believe I didn't know he died two whole years ago. I mean, gee! I'm so sorry, honey." She continued.

"_Wait a second, if Erinn's father ran all the other inn's out of business, then how are they failing, they should be the only inn in town._" Matthew thought.

"Not at all. I'm just sorry that you came all this way for nothing." Erinn said.

"Hey, no apology needed. I mean, I got to meet you instead, right? You're coming back with me to Stornway." Patty said with determination.

"Um… I'm afraid I don't think that's possible. I have my hands full with this place as it is. And I just find it hard to believe that Dad was some kind of legendary innkeeper." Erinn said nervously, she liked Patty but she really didn't think she could just go off and leave Angel Falls because some stranger told her that her father was a famous innkeeper.

"Hard to believe!? You can't argue with the facts, honey. And I can see you're a chip off the old block too. I've got a knack for seeing people's strengths, ya know." She said, trying to convince Erinn that what she said was true.

"Oh dear. It's getting late and I really need to get started on supper. You'll have to excuse me." Erinn said. "And please… I can't go to Stornway with you, so stop trying to talk me into it!" She said before rushing out of the room.

"A stubborn one, huh? Don't worry, sweetie, you'll see sense before long!" Patty said. Before turning to Njord and Matthew. "Hey… Yeah, I thought I recognized you two. You're the guys who helped me out back at the ruins, right? Thanks again for that. You know, while you're in the helping mood, honey, you couldn't try to twist Erinn's arm, could you? I can't let that kind of talent go to waste. It'd be good for her too, you know." She said before the two left to follow Erinn.

"Why would she want us to twist Erinn's arm, wouldn't that be painful?" Njord asked Matthew.

"It's an expression Njord." Matthew said, his friend had a fairly good grasp of most human speech, but some phrases that they used still confused him. "Oh, great it's Ivor." He groaned under his breath as the blond boy walked up to them.

"Erinn passed by just now and she was acting really odd. I wonder what's going on." He said. Since he seemed genuinely concerned for her well being the two told him how Patty was trying to convince Erinn to got to Stornway with her. "No way! That Patty woman's trying to recruit her? Surely Erinn wouldn't think of leaving here and going to live in Stornway!" He said before walking off and mumbling to himself.

"Hey Njord, we're two fairly noticeable people right?" Matthew asked his companion as started off towards Erinn's house.

"I would like to think so Matthew, why do you ask?" Njord responded.

"Why does nobody ever seem to notice us even if we're in the same room with them?" Matthew asked as they crossed the small bridges that connected one part of the town to the other. Njord simply shrugged before they caught sight of a glowing blue figure standing outside of Erinn's door. Recognizing the figure as a spirit, Matthew walked up behind it and cleared his throat, causing the spirit to jump.

"Waaah!" The spirit said as it turned around. "You g-gave me a fright! D-Don't do that again, will you?" The spirit said before its eyes widened. "Wait a minute! You can see me!? But I'm dead! I had a feeling that you saw me back at the Hexagon too." He said causing their eyes to widen as they indeed recognized him as the spirit that had led them to the button that had opened the Hexagon. "That's quite a strange talent you've got there." He continued. "Sorry, I haven't introduced myself, have I? I'm Erinn's father, Edwinn." He said.

"Well that certainly some things." Matthew said, Njord nodded in agreement.

"I fell ill two years ago and died suddenly. But as you can see, I still haven't managed to leave this mortal realm entirely. And you are?" He asked.

"I'm Njord and this is Matthew." Njord said as he gestured to his compatriot.

"R-Really? B-But… aren't those? Aren't you the village guardians?" Edwinn asked.

"Hey! Hang on a minute!" A high pitched voice yelled. A pink ball of light flew over an crashed into Njord, knocking him back slightly. The ball disappeared and was replaced with a small dark skinned blond girl wearing an orange dress and, strangely enough large pink wings.

"Ouch!" She said as she held her head. "Oi! Watch where you're flapping standing! I may be skinny as a rake but I still need a bit of room for maneuvers!" She said, seeming to get over her collision rather quickly. "Never mind, I forgive you. Now, old man! What was that rubbish you were just sprouting?" She said.

"I, er… I'm not sure what you mean." Edwinn said nervously, first meeting the guardians and now this? Why couldn't he have a normal afterlife?

"You were on about Celestrians, right? I wondered the same thing at first, but these minstrels hardly fit the bill." She said. Ignoring Njord's indignant shout of "I'm not a minstrel!"

"I don't see a halo, do you? And I don't see any wings either. Bit odd for a Celestrian that, wouldn't you say?" She continued.

"I suppose you're right. Though, while we're on the subject of odd, who and what are you?" Edwinn asked.

"Ha! Wouldn't you like to know? Yes, I suppose you would. Then I'd better introduce myself. Wait for it…" She said as she struck a pose. "I am the supreme stupendous Stella, stunning skipper of the sky-soaring Starflight Express! Ta daa!" She said. The three looking at her just stood in an uncomfortable silence.

"Er, I…see." Edwinn said. While he did not understand what she was talking about the two former Celestrians shared a look, if she was what she claimed to be then she might know how to get them back to the observatory.

"Right then, your turn. Time to fly your true colours and tell us who you really are." She said causing Njord to furrow his brow in anger and Matthew to frown; one thing that neither of them could stand was being called liars. "You look like a regular mortal to me, so how come you can see the Starflight Express and ghosts like this old bloke?" She said, gesturing to Edwinn.

Njord and Matthew then went into a short version of their fall from the observatory and sudden transformation into humans.

"Hmm… Okay. So you fell off the Observatory during the earthquake, right? And when you came around to your senses, you were in this village with your wings and your halo missing? Sounds like a bit of a tall yarn, if you ask me." She said.

"We didn't ask you." Njord snapped, he did not enjoy being accused of dishonesty.

"If you lost your wings and your halo, how is it that you can still see ghosts and the like Bit neither here not there, isn't it?" Stell asked. "I know!" She said as she snapped her fingers. "If you're Celestrians, then prove it. Send someone's spirit up to the heavens. You've got nothing to lose, and this old bloke here just happens to be in need of a shove in the righteous direction." She said.

"Wait! Are you talking about me? I'm not exactly happy as I am, but…" Edwinn said before Stella cut him off.

"Let me guess, you're only a ghost because you've got some kind of unfinished business to put to sleep, right? Alright then, help this spook here tie up his loose ends and then send him on his way." Stella said. "Then I'll believe that you're a Celestrian and I might even give you a lift back to the Observatory on the old Starflight Express. Can't say fierier than tha, right? So I'll tag along with you for a while until the job's done." She said before turning back into a small pink ball of light.

"Well this is all rather strange. Still, I appreciate your willingness to help." Edwinn said. "Hmm… I wonder what unfinished business is stopping me from going up to the heavens. I don't suppose… I wonder if it's to do with that thing I buried behind the inn." He said contemplatively.

With that clue in mind the group of two (plus Stella) went to a small rise just behind the inn, they searched around before Matthew found a gold trophy underneath a bush. The two looked at the inscription and saw that it was awarded to Edwinn by king Schott of Stornway.

"Wow… Innkeeping is serious business if the king gives out an award for it." Njord said with a raised eyebrow.

"We'd better show this to Erinn." Matthew said as he and Njord headed back to Erinn's house.

"What's up, guys?" Erinn asked as the two entered her room. Matthew promptly retrieved the trophy from his bag and handed it to Erinn. Her eyes widened as she read the inscription.

"An award for being an Inncredible Inntertainer… From the king of Stornway? To my father…? I don't believe it! Patty's story was all true!" She exclaimed. "I don't understand, though. Why would Dad have given up all that to come here to sleepy old Angel Falls. What in the world was he thinking of?" Erinn asked, more to herself than Matthew or Njord.

"I may be able to shed a little light on that." Erinn's grandfather said as he entered the room.

"Grandpa?" Erinn said, confused.

"Edwinn made me promise not to say anything, so I've kept it a secret all these years, but I don't see that it matters now." He said. "Dear Erinn… You must remember how sickly you were as a child. Your poor mother was the same. In the normal course of things, you would have become sicker and sicker as you got older. Eventually, you would have died. We lost your mother at a young age to the same fate." He said with sorrow in his voice as he remembered the loss of Erinn's mother.

"But I'm perfectly healthy. I hardly even remember being sick any more." Erinn said.

"That's because you were brought up on water from the falls here in this village. Angel Falls' water is famous for making people healthy and curing their ills." Her grandfather responded.

"So… What you're saying is that dad gave up his inn in Stornway and came back here for my sake?" She asked.

"That's right. Saving his daughter was far more important to him than his own ambitions." He said.

"But that's terrible! I stood in the way of my father and his dreams." Erinn said, feeling bad that her poor health had impeded her father's success.

"He knew you'd feel that way. That's why he didn't want you to know. But you're mature enough now to be told the truth." Her grandfather said.

"You know, I always wondered why he sometimes had that faraway look on his face. Now I know… He did that all for me…" Erinn said as she remembered how sometimes, when her father thought no one was looking, he would stare of into space with a faint smile on his face. Erinn then turned to Njord and Matthew. "Um, guys. It looks like I'm going to be leaving for Stornway. I don't know if I can be of any help to Patty, but I have to at least give it a try!" She said with new determination in her voice before walking out of the room.

As Njord and Matthew went to their room they saw the ghost of Edwinn. Stella reappeared and flew in front of them.

"You there, grandad?" She asked.

"I'm here. I heard everything. I can't believe Erinn is going to follow my ambition in my place she really has grown up. Now I have no regrets. I know that she'll succeed. She doesn't need me watching over her shoulder." He said as he was engulfed in a swirling blue light. "It looks like I'm ready to leave. Theank you so much, my honoured Guardians." He said before he floated up and disappeared.

"He's gone!" Stella said before turning to the two. "You did it! So you are Celestrians after all. Well, a promise is a promise. I'll give you two a lift back to the Observatory like we agreed, so say thanks to your lucky stars." She said before she flew over and looked down at the floor. "Hang on to your horses a minute. Shouldn't you be picking up that benevolessence?" She asked. Njord's and Matthew's eyes widened as they realized that they couldn't see it. "You can flapping see it, can't you? Don't tell me you can't see benevolessence any more!" She said.

"Ok I won't, it doesn't make it any less true though." Njord said. "_Man, she's worse at human phrases than I am._" He thought to himself.

"Now I'm starting to wonder again… Are you really Celestrians, or are you pulling my chain?" She asked.

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><p>TIME SKIP<p>

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><p>Several days later the landslide had been cleared and the mountain pass was opened up again. Erinn and Patty were standing outside of Erinn's house, ready to depart for Stornway.<p>

"I'll miss you, Grandpa. You take care of yourself won't you?" Erinn asked.

"You too. It'll be hard work making a living in a new town. Make sure you don't go working yourself sick." Her Grandpa said.

"I know you're worried about your little girl, but I'm gonna be around to help her out, so you just relax, okay?" Patty said as she stepped forward.

"That's good to know, Patty. You've helped to set an old man's mind at ease." He responded.

"Ivor! Can I have a word?" Erinn yelled to Ivor who was sulking by the side of the house.

"What do you want to talk to me for You're leaving, so you obviously don't care." Ivor replied angrily.

"I was wondering if you might take over the inn here for me. I don't have the heart to close it down, you see. You'll do it, won't you? I know I can count on you!" Erinn said.

"I suppose I'll do it, but only to get Dad off my back with his nagging about me finding a job. I'm not doing it for you!" Ivor said. "Anyway, I bet I'll be so good at innkeeping that I'll soon trump your place over in Stornway!" He challenged.

"And I wish you luck with it. Not that I'll let you get the better of me, of course!" Erinn replied good-naturedly.

"Oh yeah? Sounds like we've got a competition on our hands!" He said before running off to the inn to start working.

"Njord and Matthew, I can't thank you enough for what you've done." Erinn said, turning back to the two. "It's amazing how you managed to find Dad's hidden trophy like that. You two really are mysteries. I wouldn't be surprised if you turned out to be our Guardians after all." She said. "Haha! Listen to me and my wild imagination! I suppose you'll be heading off to your hometown now, will you? If your journey brings you through Stornway, make sure you come and stay at my new inn, won't you?" She asked. "I'd better get going then. Goodbye, everyone. And thank you all for everything." She said before she and Patty headed off and her grandfather went back into the house.

"Time for us to make some tracks too. You remember where the Starflight Express is, presumably?" Stella asked as she appeared next to the two, who nodded. "Come on then, let's head for the pass!"

They then headed towards the pass, meeting no resistance from the local monsters who ran at the sight of them. They eventually made it to the Starflight Express, Stella unlocked the door and they went aboard.

The two Celestrians were stunned by the inside of the coach, it seemed to be made almost entirely out of gold.

"So here we are on the Starflight. What do you reckon? Pretty swish, isn't she?" Stella asked and the two could only nod in awe.

Stella then flew over to the controls and hit one of the buttons, the Starflight shook, but other than that nothing happened.

"Oh, flap. We have a problem. I thought it would fly if there was a Celestrian on board I wonder what's wrong…" Stella said before turning around. "Hey, you couldn't see that benevolessence before, could you, even though you reckon you're Celestrians? That must be the problem! I mean it's a bit much to expect me to believe that Celestrians can just lose their halos and their wings, isn't it?" She asked as she flew over to them.

"No." Njord and Matthew said simultaneously.

"Ha! Don't get you knickerbockers in a twist! I was only saying." Stella said nervously as she saw the deadpan expression on their faces.

"Anyway, we don't have time for this. The Almighty won't be best pleased if we hang around here when there's big stuff going on." Stella said before literally screaming at the Almighty to help them. "That's weird… He's probably too busy to notice us or something…" She said.

"Does he normally respond to you yelling demands at him?" Matthew asked with a raised eyebrow.

"No but I would expect him to notice that the Express wasn't on time." Stella responded. "Alright then, here's what we'll do: we'll follow the road to this Stornway place. When we get there, we'll help lots of people and get loads of benevolessence. That should make that Almighty oaf prick his eyes up. Let's get moving." She said before reverting to a ball of light.

"Wait a second." Njord said as he and Matthew paused outside of the Starflight. Njord pulled a small whistle out of his bag and blew, emitting a high pitched shrieking noise. Several seconds later his horse came charging down the road like a black blur. It slowed and eventually stopped right in front of them, Njord immediately got in the saddle. "Well come on we don't got all day he sad before setting out at a leisurely pace, just slow enough for Matthew to be able to walk next to him.

"Why do you get the horse?" Matthew asked.

"Because he's mine and I say so." Njord deadpanned. "Now let's move." He said as he and Matthew started down the trail to Stornway.

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><p>Well the hamster got away (sneaky little bastard) so I'm out of small furry animals, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't review.<p>

Thank you for those of you who may have recommended me to others.


	7. Chapter 6

AN: I don't own the dragon quest franchise

Well guys I'll be starting my junior year tomorrow so reviews may or may not become more infrequent.

I have captured a small kitten if you do not review then…let's just say you don't want to know the terrible things you can do to another living being with a spoon.

AN: There will not be any non canon people in the party, there's a reason that your companions aren't shown in cutscenes, because explaining to them your origins and then explaining how they can see and touch things like the starflight express would mess with the storyline.

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><p>LAST TIME<p>

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><p>"Wait a second." Njord said as he and Matthew paused outside of the Starflight. Njord pulled a small whistle out of his bag and blew, emitting a high pitched shrieking noise. Several seconds later his horse came charging down the road like a black blur. It slowed and eventually stopped right in front of them, Njord immediately got in the saddle. "Well come on we don't got all day he sad before setting out at a leisurely pace, just slow enough for Matthew to be able to walk next to him.<p>

"Why do you get to ride the horse?" Matthew asked.

"Because he's mine and I say so." Njord deadpanned. "Now let's move." He said as he and Matthew started down the trail to Stornway.

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><p>NOW<p>

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><p>The two walked in silence down the path to Stornway, only pausing every once in a while to fight off some random monsters, Matthew took care of most of the ground bound monsters because they were too short for Njord to attack from the top of his horse, however when they were ambushed by a group of floating winksters he was able to close the distance between them and dispatch the flying wizard monsters quickly. On one occasion when Njord did decide to dismount a hammerhood managed to sneak up on him, but before it managed to strike him, Sleipnir ran up, stood on his hind legs, pivoted around, and when he landed he kicked out his hind legs, making the hammerhood go flying.<p>

"Thanks boy, you are definitely getting an extra apple for that." Njord said as he remounted his horse. Sleipnir shook his mane and snorted as if to say, "_You better believe I did._" It was strange how fast a bond had formed between the two, it had gotten to the point that Njord could understand what the horse meant just by his actions and body language.

The two eventually made it to Stornway just before sunset. It was a large bustling city, but the two most prominent buildings were the massive stone castle, and the inn which was close to the entrance. As Njord handed Sleipnir's reins to a stable boy they saw two familiar people standing just outside the inn's entrance. They moved closer so that they would be able to hear what they were saying.

"Hey, Erinn, what's up? Not nervous, are you, honey?" Patty asked. The young girl was shaking slightly, no doubt worrying about what the other people who worked at the inn would think of her.

"I'm afraid so. I just can't see how a young girl like me can suddenly take over such a big and important inn. And surely everyone else will be thinking exactly the same thing…" Erinn said nervously, she felt slightly better telling Patty about her fears, she had come to see the older woman as a good friend in their short time together, but she still could not help but tremble slightly with apprehension.

"Sure, maybe they will." Patty said with a shrug. "But I trust my instincts…and you should too! I know you've got what it takes, Erinn. Seriously just quit worrying!" She said, trying to reassure her younger companion.

"If you say so…" Erinn said.

"Now, time to introduce you to your new colleagues!" Patty said as she went and opened the door. "Hey, guys! I'm back! And I've brought a big, shiny ray of hope along with me!" She yelled as she practically dragged Erinn into the inn.

"This should be good for a laugh. Come on, let's follow them in there and see how Erinn gets on." Stella said as they walked towards the inn, they needed a place to stay for the night anyways.

The two walked in and witnessed several people gathered across from Patty and Erinn, the two decided not to interfere so they just leaned against the wall and watched.

"Honestly, Patty! What were you thinking?" One of the people, a woman with light red hair and a yellow dress shouted. "This slip of a girl's going to run the inn, is she? We're on the brink of closing as it is. Are you trying to finish us off?" She continued. Her remarks made Erinn look down at the ground and caused Matthew to scowl, he was about to go give the woman some very strong words when he felt Njord's hand on his shoulder, he looked back and saw his friend slowly shook his head, so he begrudgingly went back to leaning on the wall, though with a noticeable scowl on his face.

"Jeez, Ginny, calm down will ya? D'you think I'd just pick any young thing off the street to run this place? Erinn here may not look much, but she's got innkeeping in her blood. She'll have us back on track before you can say welcome!" Patty said confidently.

"Didn't you say the same kind of thing about me when you brought me here?" Ginny asked with a raised eyebrow. "And didn't you also say you were going off to find the one guy who can save this place for certain? No offence, but I'm not too convinced this is the guy you were talking about." She continued as she turned her back to the two. Once again Njord noticed that as she turned her eyes passed over him and Matthew without pause, as if she didn't even notice the two armed strangers.

"_This girl is really beginning to try my patience with her condescending attitude. And why don't people realize that saying "no offence" does not stop a comment from being offensive?_" Njord thought as he saw Matthew's scowl deepen, if this girl kept insulting Erinn he would probably have to physically keep Matthew from beating her to a pulp with a chair.

"Please just give me a chance! You won't find anyone who'll try harder than me. And I learnt all there is to know about innkeeping from my father!" Erinn said.

"So your father was an innkeeper too, was he? And I suppose you're here to make your daddy proud, hm? Well, that's very admirable, but running an inn isn't as easy as just turning up and promising to try hard, you know. And you can talk all you like about how much your father taught you, but we don't even know who your father was." Ginny said as she put her hands on her hips.

Njord and Matthew turned to each other, the scowls on their faces now faced with confident smirks, they knew what was going to come next, and they were going to enjoy seeing the haughty girl get knocked down a peg or two.

"There it is! The challenge we've been waiting for! Now's the time to show her, honey!" Patty said as she turned her head towards Erinn.

"Um…show what? Oh! You mean this?" Erinn said as she removed the inny from her bag.

"W-Wait! That trophy… It's…!" Ginny said, incapable of completing her sentences.

"It sure is! The Inny for Inncredible Inntertaining, awarded by none other than our very own King Schott!" Patty said proudly. "Well? Now tell me you doubt how good he was! And Erinn here shares the same Inncredible blood! Not bad, huh?" She asked.

"Th-The Inncredible Inntertainer's daughter…Oh… Oh,my…!" Ginny stuttered out as she, the waiter, and the maid all bowed in front of Patty and Erinn, causing Erinn to flush bright red. As Njord and Matthew saw this they looked to each other with raised eyebrows before looking back at the scene unfolding before them.

"Um, it's ok, really. There's no need to bow and scrape or anything." Erinn said shyly. The three then got up and dusted themselves off. Njord and Matthew then walked up to the group and Matthew tapped Erinn on the shoulder causing her to jump slightly and turn to face them.

"Oh, Matthew and Njord! You came and visited just like you said you would! And so soon! I'm afraid we've only just arrived ourselves thought. We're not quite ready to take any guests yet." She said as she looked down at the ground.

"Hey, don't sweat it, sweetie. I'm sure they didn't come here to stay. I bet you came because you were worried about Erinn, huh? You wanted to see how she was getting on, right?" She asked.

"Well I'm sure Matthew did." Njord said as nodded his head slightly towards his friend, who turned slightly red at the accusation. However Matthew didn't notice that Erinn also blushed slightly.

"Well if they aren't open yet we'll just set up a tent." Matthew said as the two walked out of the inn. Njord nodded and began to set up their tent in a small clearing near the inn. Since they were inside a walled city they didn't have to worry about taking watch, so they both crawled into their sleeping bags and quickly fell asleep.

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><p>Remember to review and leave your opinion on who Njord should be paired with.<p>

And remember each review saves a kitten from the spoon.


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